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Energy
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April 16, 2024
W&T Offshore Accuses Pipeline Co. Of $3M Per Month Losses
A Gulf of Mexico oil producer claims it is losing millions of dollars a month from regulators' forced shut-in of a pipeline network it depends on in a lawsuit filed in Texas federal court alleging the pipeline company violated their contract to follow U.S. law and keep the line operating.
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April 16, 2024
Activist Axes $3.6B SilverBow Merger Plan Amid Proxy Fight
New York-based asset manager Kimmeridge said Tuesday it has scrapped its March offer to create a $3.6 billion Eagle Ford shale operator by combining the assets of Kimmeridge Texas Gas with those of shale driller SilverBow Resources, stating it will now focus on getting its three nominees elected to SilverBow's board.
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April 16, 2024
DOL Finalizes Rule To Curb Miners' Exposure To Silica Dust
A U.S. Department of Labor agency released final regulations Tuesday that tighten limits on miners' exposure to workplace silica dust, a toxic substance that increases the risk of death and chronic health conditions.
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April 15, 2024
Structured Deposits Recalled In Ex-Ecuadorian Official's Trial
A bookkeeper testified Monday in Miami federal court that he conducted a series of structured deposits and other suspicious transactions while working at a tile company owned by the son of Ecuador's former comptroller general, who's accused of laundering millions of dollars in bribes from Brazilian conglomerate Odebrecht SA.
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April 15, 2024
Ocean Agency Requires Cos. To Cover Well Razing Costs
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management on Monday unveiled a final rule aimed at ensuring oil and gas companies, and not taxpayers, are the ones footing the bill for decommissioning offshore wells and infrastructure.
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April 15, 2024
Justices Leave Lower Courts To Parse Corporate 'Half-Truths'
A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that corporate silence isn't enough to form the basis of a securities fraud suit pointedly declined to wade into the question of what counts as a "half-truth," leaving it to lower courts to wrestle with which corporate statements are blurry enough to sustain a shareholder class action.
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April 15, 2024
Coal Exec's Widow Seeks Atty Fees After Toss Of $6.5B Suit
The widow of a bankrupt coal company's former president requested $525,000 in attorney fees and costs Monday after a D.C. federal judge tossed a suit alleging her husband's estate and another business owed a union pension plan $6.5 billion, saying the plan's trustees can afford to pay.
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April 15, 2024
Exxon Seeks $1.8B Tax Refund As Qatar Deal Trial Opens
Exxon Mobil Corp. argued Monday in Texas federal court that its deal with Qatar to extract natural gas from the country's coast was a partnership, rather than a lease agreement, saying at the start of a trial that it's entitled to get $1.8 billion in tax benefits back from the IRS.
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April 15, 2024
Solar Power Co. Accuses Ex-Insider Of Building, Selling Rival
Delaware-chartered solar energy venture Volt Energy Utility LLC has sued a former top officer in Chancery Court, alleging that while employed by Volt, she secretly launched a competing company, contacted Volt's lenders and customers and then sold the new business to a wholly owned subsidiary of Tokyo Gas Co. Ltd. for $216 million.
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April 15, 2024
NH Power Plant Co. Can Send Dual-Path Ch. 11 Plan To A Vote
The operator of a New Hampshire power plant fueled by scrap wood can seek creditors' approval of its Chapter 11 proposal, through which the debtor would either sell its assets or hand ownership of the reorganized business to lenders, a Delaware bankruptcy judge ruled Monday.
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April 15, 2024
Power Seller Presses 5th Circ. To Uphold $25M Contract Win
An electricity seller on Friday told the Fifth Circuit that a lower court got it right when it awarded more than $25 million in a contract fight with a power trader over electricity price-hedging deals that sustained heavy losses during 2021's Winter Storm Uri.
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April 15, 2024
UK Trading Platform Marex Eyes US Markets For $300M IPO
Private equity-backed U.K. trading platform Marex Group PLC launched plans Monday for an estimated $300 million initial public offering, represented by Latham & Watkins LLP and underwriters' counsel Kirkland & Ellis LLP, becoming the latest U.K.-area firm to seek capital from U.S. markets.
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April 15, 2024
Watson Farley Hires 2 Singapore Partners From McDermott
Watson Farley & Williams LLP has tapped two energy lawyers from McDermott Will & Emery LLP to serve as partners in the global law firm's Singapore office, saying they bring broad expertise in advising a range of Asia-Pacific clients on project development in power and renewables.
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April 15, 2024
4th Circ. Upholds W.Va.'s Win In Coal Mine Cleanup Suit
The Fourth Circuit on Monday affirmed a West Virginia federal court's order ending developers' allegations that the state's environmental regulators' reclamation efforts at an old coal mining site constituted illegal dumping, finding the lower court correctly concluded the efforts are exempt from regulations prohibiting open dumps.
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April 15, 2024
Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court
Last week, Delaware justices mulled whether one Chancery Court vice chancellor properly voided four company bylaws — just as another vice chancellor voided one more. Fights among Truth Social investors continued, and shareholders launched new cases involving Macy's, United Airlines, and Clayton Dubilier & Rice LLC and Stone Point Capital LLC.
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April 15, 2024
Naftogaz Urges Court To Uphold $5B Award Against Russia
Ukraine's state-owned oil company has hit back at Russia's bid in D.C. federal court to toss its attempt to enforce a $5 billion arbitral award it won after its Crimean assets were seized following Russia's annexation of the peninsula, saying the court has jurisdiction over the case.
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April 15, 2024
Republican AGs Ask 5th Circ. To Knock Out DOL Rule For ESG
A group of Republican-led states have urged the Fifth Circuit to scrap a U.S. Department of Labor rule allowing retirement advisers to consider social and political issues when choosing investments, arguing that the agency is flouting protections set in stone by federal benefits law.
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April 15, 2024
2nd Circ. Affirms Telecom Co.'s $13M Union Pension Bill
The Second Circuit upheld a New York federal court's determination that a telecommunications company owed $13 million in withdrawal liability to a multiemployer pension plan for electrical and contract workers, agreeing Monday with an arbitrator's finding that a construction industry exception didn't apply to the disputed work.
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April 15, 2024
EQT To Swap $500M Of Gas Assets As Part Of Divestiture Plan
EQT Corp. and Equinor said Monday that they have agreed to an asset swap arrangement that will include Equinor paying $500 million in cash for a minority stake in EQT's nonoperated natural gas assets in Northeast Pennsylvania, part of a broader EQT strategy to divest assets and reduce debt ahead of its planned close of an energy mega-deal.
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April 15, 2024
Simpson Thacher Corporate Pro Rejoins Weil In Houston
Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP announced Monday that it has welcomed back an infrastructure lawyer who has rejoined the firm in Houston after six years with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP.
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April 15, 2024
EPA Won't Cut Stationary Combustion Turbines From CAA
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday rejected a petition filed by energy industry groups looking to remove stationary combustion turbines from the list of sources subject to regulation for emissions of air toxics.
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April 15, 2024
Italian Cable Giant Prysmian Buying Encore Wire For $4.2B
Milan-based electric cabling manufacturer Prysmian said Monday it has agreed to purchase McKinney, Texas-based Encore Wire in a transaction with an approximately $4.2 billion enterprise value.
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April 12, 2024
Split PTAB Panel Upholds QinetiQ Fracking Patent
A British defense contractor successfully fought off a legal challenge surrounding its patent covering a fracking device, in a ruling from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board that was split three ways over the matter.
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April 12, 2024
Chamber Defends SEC Climate Regs From Enviros' Challenge
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce wants to help defend the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission against legal challenges environmental groups have brought over its climate disclosure regulations, even after the business group sued the regulator in March to have the rules nixed.
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April 12, 2024
Feds Must Rethink Erasing Aluminum Duty After Refund Issue
The U.S. Department of Commerce must reconsider expanding a duty refund to wipe out a Turkish aluminum importer's anti-dumping tariff, after the U.S. Court of International Trade found that officials applied the refund to ineligible imports.
Expert Analysis
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Unpacking Long-Awaited Clean Energy Tax Credit Guidance
Recently proposed Internal Revenue Service regulations provide welcome confirmatory guidance on the application of investment tax credits as reworked by 2022's Inflation Reduction Act, prevailing wage and apprenticeship rules that are largely consistent with market expectations, and broader eligibility criteria that should please the wind power industry in particular, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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What Lawyers Must Know About Calif. State Bar's AI Guidance
Initial recommendations from the State Bar of California regarding use of generative artificial intelligence by lawyers have the potential to become a useful set of guidelines in the industry, covering confidentiality, supervision and training, communications, discrimination and more, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Industry Must Elevate Native American Women Attys' Stories
The American Bar Association's recent research study into Native American women attorneys' experiences in the legal industry reveals the glacial pace of progress, and should inform efforts to amplify Native voices in the field, says Mary Smith, president of the ABA.
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Expanding EPA's Universal Waste Rule For Renewable Energy
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plans to modify and expand the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act's universal waste rule to include lithium batteries and solar panels next year, which could intensify current standards in some cases, but weaken them in others, says Aaron Goldberg at Beveridge & Diamond.
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Understanding Discovery Obligations In Era Of Generative AI
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Attorneys and businesses must adapt to the unique discovery challenges presented by generative artificial intelligence, such as chatbot content and prompts, while upholding the principles of fairness, transparency and compliance with legal obligations in federal civil litigation, say attorneys at King & Spalding.
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Calif. Resource Adequacy Update May Revalue Power Projects
The California Public Utilities Commission's recently initiated proceeding to overhaul its resource adequacy framework — part of an effort to maintain the reliability of the state's power system while decarbonizing it — could have significant effects on the valuation of existing and future power generation resources, say Nicholas Gladd and Max Learner at Wilson Sonsini.
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Forecasting The Impact Of High Court Debit Card Rule Case
John Delionado and Aidan Gross at Hunton consider how the U.S. Supreme Court's forthcoming ruling in a retailer's suit challenging a Federal Reserve rule on debit card swipe fees could affect agency regulations both new and old, as well as the businesses that might seek to challenge them.
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Series
ESG Around The World: Mexico
ESG has yet to become part of the DNA of the Mexican business model, but huge strides are being made in that direction, as more stakeholders demand that companies adopt, at the least, a modicum of sustainability commitments and demonstrate how they will meet them, says Carlos Escoto at Galicia Abogados.
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The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms
In today's competitive legal hiring market, an intentionally designed training program for law school graduates awaiting bar admission can be an effective way of creating a pipeline of qualified candidates, says Brent Daub at Gilson Daub.
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Taking Action On Interagency Climate Financial Risk Guidance
Recent joint guidance from the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on climate-related financial risk management for large institutions makes it clear that banks should be proactive in assessing their risks and preparing for further regulation, says Douglas Thompson at Snell & Wilmer.
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Opinion
A Telecom Attorney's Defense Of The Chevron Doctrine
The Chevron doctrine, which requires judicial deference to federal regulators, is under attack in two U.S. Supreme Court cases — and while most telecom attorneys likely agree that the Federal Communications Commission is guilty of overrelying on it, the problem is not the doctrine itself, says Carl Northrop at Telecommunications Law Professionals.
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SEC Whistleblower Action Spotlights Risks For Private Cos.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent whistleblower action against Monolith Resources holds important implications for private companies, who could face unprecedented regulatory scrutiny amid the agency's efforts to beef up environmental, social and governance reporting and enforcement, say attorneys at Wiley.
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Attorneys Have An Ethical Duty To Protect The Judiciary
The tenor of public disagreement and debate has become increasingly hostile against judges, and though the legislative branch is trying to ameliorate this safety gap, lawyers have a moral imperative and professional requirement to stand with judges in defusing attacks against them and their rulings, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.
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What NJ's Green Remediation Guidance Means For Cleanups
Recent guidance from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection promoting greener approaches to restoring contaminated sites demonstrates the state's commitment to sustainability and environmental justice — but could also entail more complexity, higher costs and longer remediation timelines, say J. Michael Showalter and Bradley Rochlen at ArentFox Schiff.
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Mo. Solar Projects Need Clarity On Enterprise Zone Tax Relief
In Missouri, enhanced enterprise zones offer tax abatements that could offset the cost of solar project infrastructure, but developers must be willing to navigate uncertainty about whether the project is classified as real property, say Lizzy McEntire and Anna Kimbrell at Husch Blackwell.